Publication Type Academic Article
Authors Jackowski A, Perera T, Abdallah C, Garrido G, Tang C, Martinez J, Mathew S, Gorman J, Rosenblum L, Smith E, Dwork A, Shungu D, Kaffman A, Gelernter J, Coplan J, Kaufman J
Journal Psychiatry Res
Volume 192
Issue 1
Pagination 37-44
Date Published 03/05/2011
ISSN 0165-1781
Keywords Anxiety, Corpus Callosum, Hippocampus, Stress, Psychological
Abstract Male bonnet monkeys (Macaca radiata) were subjected to the variable foraging demand (VFD) early stress paradigm as infants, MRI scans were completed an average of 4 years later, and behavioral assessments of anxiety and ex-vivo corpus callosum (CC) measurements were made when animals were fully matured. VFD rearing was associated with smaller CC size, CC measurements were found to correlate with fearful behavior in adulthood, and ex-vivo CC assessments showed high consistency with earlier MRI measures. Region of interest (ROI) hippocampus and whole brain voxel-based morphometry assessments were also completed and VFD rearing was associated with reduced hippocampus and inferior and middle temporal gyri volumes. The animals were also characterized according to serotonin transporter genotype (5-HTTLPR), and the effect of genotype on imaging parameters was explored. The current findings highlight the importance of future research to better understand the effects of stress on brain development in multiple regions, including the corpus callosum, hippocampus, and other regions involved in emotion processing. Nonhuman primates provide a powerful model to unravel the mechanisms by which early stress and genetic makeup interact to produce long-term changes in brain development, stress reactivity, and risk for psychiatric disorders.
DOI 10.1016/j.pscychresns.2010.11.006
PubMed ID 21377844
PubMed Central ID PMC4090111
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